While much of Central New York will have little more to deal with today than wind and cold weather, an intense band of lake effect snow is slowly sweeping south across the counties east and southeast of Lake Ontario.

The band of lake effect is producing snowfall at a rate of 1-3 inches per hour. Snowfall so far has been on the order of 6-12 inches in Jefferson and Lewis Counties. (High Market in Lewis County: 10 inches, North Redfield in Oswego County: 7 inches in 4 hours between 5 and 9 AM.)

During this afternoon the Lake effect band will sink a little farther south deeper into Oswego and Oneida Counties and weaken slightly. Because it will be slowly moving, 4-10 inches of new snow seems a good bet for today for places like Oswego, Parish, Camden and possibly Fulton.

Computer models are suggesting the band will make it down into northern Onondaga, and northern Madison Counties sometime around 4:00 to 6:00 PM and weaken further.

Sometime around 10:00 or 11:00 PM then the band is forecast to drop farther south into central and southern Onondaga County. In Onondaga County, 2-6 inches is a reasonable expectancy by sunrise Thursday.